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Cowboys' Jerry Jones expects bounce-back season for Ezekiel Elliott after drama of 2017

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told reporters Wednesday that he believes running back Ezekiel Elliott will be more productive in 2018 than he was a year ago, now that there is no looming suspension or uncertainty about his status.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told reporters Wednesday that he believes running back Ezekiel Elliott will be more productive in 2018 than he was a year ago, now that there is no looming suspension or uncertainty about his status.

Jones said he'd give Elliott "a big arrow (up) as to what his performance might be" without the threat of a possible suspension hanging over him. After a lengthy back-and-forth in the legal system, Elliott ultimately served a six-game suspension over domestic violence allegations last year.

"I think that not having to address that mentally and physically (will help)," Jones told reporters at the team's annual golf event in Grapevine, Texas. "Not having to think about not only the interruption of the potential suspension and the suspension but just the physical interruption, the physical aspect of that.

"But from the standpoint of mentally, there is no question — I'm 100% sure — to not have that on your mind, to not have the ambiguity of not knowing timelines, those kinds of things, there's no doubt in my mind it will make a significant difference in how he can focus, how he can focus not only on the next practice but the next game and the entire season."

Elliott, 22, ran for 983 yards and seven touchdowns in 10 games last season after racking up 1,631 yards and more than twice as many rushing touchdowns (15) as a rookie the previous year. The Cowboys view Elliott and quarterback Dak Prescott, who is also entering his third NFL season, as the long-term core of their offense.

To that end, team vice president Stephen Jones, Jerry's son, said in a separate interview Wednesday that Dallas is prepared to sign Prescott to a more lucrative contract when his rookie deal expires.

"You kind of, when the time comes, (expect to pay him)," Stephen Jones said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "I know Dak is going to have a good year this year. I hope it’s up there. It’s going to be as he deserves. He was a fourth-round pick. No one deserves to get paid fairly more than he does."